Prostate enlargement is prevalent among the elderly, causing a number of complications, such as urinary frequency and urgency at night, burning or painful urination, body aches, and infection of the urinary tract. The prostate gland which surrounds a portion of the urethra (i.e., the lumen which connects the urinary bladder to outside of the body), is swelling enlarged over time (i.e., BPH—benign prostate hyperplasia), compressing the urethra, and restricting urinary flow.
Devices and methods for treating prostate enlargement are known in the art. One such method involves a surgical procedure (i.e., prostatectomy, TURP—Transurethral resection of the prostate) in which the enlarged portions of the prostate gland are incised. Another method involves the insertion of an elongated instrument called resectoscope, which is inserted into the penis, and includes an electrical loop for removing the obstructing tissue and sealing the blood vessels. International Publication Number WO 2006/0404767 A1 to Sivan et al., and entitled “Prostate Treatment Stent”, is directed to a device for removing the urethra and prostate tissue, in a non-invasive manner. The device is in form of a coil, which is either made of a shape memory alloy, or an elastic material. The coil is inserted into the urethra in an expanded form, and later retracted along a longitudinal axis thereof. The axial retraction causes the coil to pinch the tissue of the urethra and the prostate over time, thereby restricting blood flow to the tissue. The lack of blood flow to the tissue causes the tissue to dry out and dislodge from the rest of the prostate gland, and carried out of the urethra by the urine stream.